Figure C
Even after taxes and transfers, inequality costs middle-class families over $19,000 a year: Real household post-tax and transfer incomes since 1979
| Year | Middle quintile | Projected middle quintile |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | $65,147 | $65,147 |
| 1980 | $62,791 | $62,938 |
| 1981 | $61,514 | $62,314 |
| 1982 | $61,460 | $63,186 |
| 1983 | $61,093 | $63,961 |
| 1984 | $64,236 | $67,021 |
| 1985 | $64,107 | $67,824 |
| 1986 | $65,819 | $72,637 |
| 1987 | $65,431 | $70,075 |
| 1988 | $66,336 | $73,080 |
| 1989 | $67,040 | $73,975 |
| 1990 | $67,354 | $73,407 |
| 1991 | $66,314 | $71,945 |
| 1992 | $67,005 | $74,055 |
| 1993 | $67,422 | $74,004 |
| 1994 | $67,664 | $74,575 |
| 1995 | $69,878 | $77,151 |
| 1996 | $70,504 | $78,898 |
| 1997 | $71,108 | $81,690 |
| 1998 | $73,799 | $85,897 |
| 1999 | $75,895 | $89,436 |
| 2000 | $75,166 | $90,812 |
| 2001 | $77,216 | $88,017 |
| 2002 | $76,766 | $85,748 |
| 2003 | $77,539 | $88,357 |
| 2004 | $79,746 | $92,573 |
| 2005 | $80,570 | $96,474 |
| 2006 | $81,169 | $99,445 |
| 2007 | $84,228 | $102,352 |
| 2008 | $84,008 | $97,935 |
| 2009 | $83,612 | $93,984 |
| 2010 | $82,555 | $94,929 |
| 2011 | $82,038 | $94,855 |
| 2012 | $81,808 | $98,154 |
| 2013 | $81,848 | $95,304 |
| 2014 | $83,809 | $98,463 |
| 2015 | $87,197 | $102,303 |
| 2016 | $88,258 | $102,376 |
| 2017 | $89,924 | $105,908 |
| 2018 | $91,758 | $109,342 |
| 2019 | $95,219 | $112,112 |
| 2020 | $106,290 | $121,738 |
| 2021 | $104,951 | $128,400 |
| 2022 | $96,939 | $116,259 |
Notes: Average post-tax and transfer incomes for non-elderly households ranked by pre-tax, pre-transfer income deflated to 2025$ using the extended chained CPI-U. The average is shown for 40th–60th percentile households as it grew historically and what it would be had it grown at the rate of overall average household income.
Source: Author's analysis of Congressional Budget Office, "The Distribution of Household Income, 2022," 2026.
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